New Google Phone Draws Mixed Reviews
“This is NOT the G2!”
So said HTC Corp. President and Chief Executive Peter Chou at at the launch of the ‘Magic’ – HTC’s second, hotly anticipated iteration of its Android-powered mobile phone.
Chou’s comments at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona underscores how far HTC believes the new phone is a departure from the G1, the first phone based on Google’s open-source software and launched by the Taiwanese manufacturer last November. HTC has grown marketshare globally against rivals, including market leader Nokia, through phones based on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile platform.
To be sure, the phone has been greatly improved, and although the user interface still looks and feels like the G1, there are several important differences.
Most obviously, the Magic doesn’t have a slide-out keyboard, making it more stylish and sleeker in design. A version with a silver and white body will be available in the U.K., France, Spain and Italy, while a black version will be sold in Germany and Italy.
:
